When can I brand my blog to the next level? Can I collaborate with brands and influencers? How much can I charge for a branded post? These are the most frequently asked questions I receive on my social media platforms. In the beginning of my blogging career it was quite a struggle to talk with other bloggers about the ‘’know hows’’, but thanks to my career in the PR Industry as a Digital Influencer Manager I got to experience the best of both worlds; working as a blogger and connecting bloggers with brands. Today I’m sharing the 5 best tips and tricks I’ve learned through out my career.

CREATE A PROFESSIONAL MEDIAKITAfter you’ve worked on the Bloggers Business Plan, it is also important to create a media kit. A bloggers media kit is a document containing basic information about you as an online influencer or your platform. The essence of a media kit is for your potential clients to understand the value of your business. A graphic designer can design a branded media kit but if you’re a bit handy, you can save yourself some money by using Canva (a free tool to graphic design).

2. BUILD A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR NETWORKWhen I started blogging in 2014, I use to style my own clothes and occasionally bought a few items from shops (which I would then return again lol), until I received a message from an old classmate, who worked at a PR Agency, asking if I wanted to photograph their showroom items and publish it on my blog. This was completely new to me! In very much the same way I collaborated with Diesel in 2016 via an old colleague. Always try to connect and build a natural relationship with the people (you started of with).

3. COLLABORATE WITH BRANDSBloggers often think they have to wait for a brand to approach them for a collaboration. That is not true! As a blogger, it is important to make yourself known to the brands you want to collaborate with. Also if you have a small following (less than 10K followers), you could still approach brands. But before you do so, think about 3-5 reasons why they should work with you in the first place.

4. CREATE YOUR OWN VALUE/OPPORTUNITY.Before I got offered sponsored travel trips, I created my own blog content when I went on holidays (with the family) to build up a travel portfolio. If you want to start a food blog and write about fancy restaurants; create your own opportunity by investing in a number of food dishes the very first times. Take credible pictures, write a nice review on your blog and contact the restaurant. After a while companies will naturally approach you to write an article about them. ‘’Don’t wait for opportunity, create it!’’

5. JOIN AFFILIATE PROGRAMSAs a blogger you’re constantly (paid or unpaid) promoting products and services for companies to convince your followers to buy. By joining an affiliate program you will receive an unique link that you can incorporate into your blogposts, Youtube videos and so on to receive commission every time a follower becomes a customer. This is an ideal way for a start-up blogger to make money. You even have a number of affiliate programs specifically build for bloggers such as RewardStyle,Awin, and Magic Links.